AS-IT-HAPPENED COVERAGE: Time to celebrate! Delridge Day 2017

11:33 AM: It’s on! Delridge Day 2017 has begun in the park outside Delridge Community Center (4501 Delridge Way SW), celebrating east West Seattle with music, vendors, community groups, food, skating, and fun. First, the entertainment schedule, on the main stage by the community center – the first band, Yesod, has just finished; here are the music and dance performances that are coming up:

There’s a second stage on the west side of the park, too, which is also where you’ll find Seattle Police with their Picnic at the Precinct – which includes free hot dogs and ice cream:

And rubber ducks:

At the skatepark on the northeast side of the park, Skate Like a Girl is offering three free skateboarding clinics, at noon, 12:45, and 1:30 pm.

And in the rest of the park, you’ll find dozens of community groups and vendors. We’re here too, and will be walking around shortly to get a list. Right across from us – West Seattle Food Bank, West Seattle Helpline, the 34th District Democrats, the West Seattle Democratic Women. We also know ORCA 2 Go is here, if you need an ORCA card. Right next to us – the information booth, so you can talk to the festival’s community organizers.

One more thing to mention – right after the festival, 3-10 pm, Ounces is having a Delridge Day afterparty – live music and beer, with $1 of “select pints” being donated toward next year’s festival costs! Ounces is at 3809 Delridge Way SW. More Delridge Day coverage to come!

12:24 PM: The weather’s beautiful – not hot, not cold, a little breezy, sun’s out, and some blue sky’s in sight. The wading pool here at the park has opened. You’ll see it in our short full-circle video on Instagram:

Also in our clip: two horses from the SPD Mounted Patrol have arrived. Meantime, we’ve wandered around to check out more of the organizations that are here – Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association, West Seattle Timebank, West Seattle Emergency Communication Hubs, Southwest Seattle Historical Society, Sound Generations, Seattle Public Library, South Seattle College, Southwest Youth and Family Services, Delridge Grocery Master Composters, various health organizations …

At the info booth next to us, by the way, you can buy a T-shirt to support Delridge Day!

Meantime, lots of people stopping by – all ages, including families with strollers, people on bicycles, and we’ve seen a few dogs, like this cute trio:

At the booth across from us, the 34th Dems are offering voter registration, if you aren’t registered yet. Lots of things you can sign up for and learn about here, besides having fun, enjoying treats, etc.

1:56 PM: Only an hour left – this festival goes fast. Still time enough to come enjoy entertainment and treats. Just caught these dancers on video:

2:44 PM: We’re in the final minutes already! Among the organizations that have enjoyed the day, Eastridge Church says it’s given away almost all the 500 backpacks it brought:

Besides the backpack giveaway, you might also know Eastridge for the turkey giveaway every Thanksgiving season.

Earlier, we mentioned the upcoming afterparty at Ounces, with $1 from select pints to be donated to fund Delridge Day – Ounces is here too:

We asked which pints would be part of the fundraiser – so, if you want to help, be sure to order Lucky Envelope Helles Lager, Rooftop Neutron Session IPA, or Mollusk Kaffeebier Coffee Brown Ale. Again, Ounces is at 3809 Delridge Way SW; afterparty’s on until 10 pm. We’ll add more festival photos when we’re back at HQ later!